Care for children free essay sample

‘’Child care (or childcare, child minding, daycare,or preschool) is the caring for and supervision of a child or children, usually from newborn to age thirteen. Child care is the action or skill of looking after children by a day-care centre, babysitter, or other providers. Child care is a broad topic covering a wide spectrum of contexts, activities, social and cultural conventions, and institutions. The majority of child care institutions that are available require that child care providers have extensive training in first aid and are CPR certified. In addition, background checks, drug testing, and reference verification are normally a requirement Family child care In home care is known as family child care it typically is provided by nannies, au pairs, or friends and family. The child is watched inside their own home or the caregivers home, reducing exposure to outside children and illnesses. Depending on the number of children in the home, the children utilizing in-home care enjoy the greatest amount of interaction with their caregiver, forming a close bond. There are no required licensing or background checks for in-home care, making parental vigilance essential in choosing an appropriate caregiver. Nanny and au pair services provide certified caregivers and the cost of in-home care is the highest of childcare options per child, though a household with many children may find this the most convenient and affordable option. Many nannies study towards childcare qualifications. This means they are trained to create a safe and stimulating environment for your child to enjoy and thrive in. Typically, au pairs or nannies provide more than routine child care, often assisting with daily household activities, including running errands, shopping, doing laundry, fixing meals, and cleaning house. Centre-based care[edit] Commercial care centres also known as daycares are open for set hours, and provide a standardized and regulated system of care for children. Parents may choose from a commercial care centre close to their work, and some companies offer care at their facilities. Active children may thrive in the educational activities provided by a quality commercial care centre, but according to the National Centre for Early Development and Learning, children from low quality centres may be significantly less advanced in terms of vocabulary and reading skills. [1] Classes are usually largest in this type of care, ratios of children to adult caregivers will vary according to state licensing requirements. Some positives of commercial care are children gain independence, academic achievement and socialization. Informal care[edit] Informal childcare is a variation of childcare that utilizes family members as a childcare system, for example grandparents and siblings. Informal childcare is an especially inexpensive form of childcare, and is utilized typically by those who are considered poor. Parents may need to utilize informal care for a variety of reasons. Typically informal childcare is necessary for families who do not have enough funds to finance placing their children in a more expensive child care facility. Those low income families are also more apt to work longer hours on an irregular and inflexible schedule, which ultimately makes using a childcare facility that has regular business hours unlikely’’ Taken from http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Child_care#Family_child_care ‘’Childminders are Ofsted registered professional daycarers who look after children in their own homes. They offer a flexible service, caring for children aged from birth to sixteen years. They are only allowed to look after upto six children between the ages birth to eight (including their own). They can have more children if they work in partnership with other childminders or assistants. The service offered is unique to each family’s needs and many childminders provide evening, weekend and school holiday cover. All childminders will have completed a training course including paediatric first aid. Nanny/Home childcarers are carers, which look after children in the family home. They can fit in with unusual hours and working patterns. They can register with Ofsted on the Voluntary register, to allow families to take advantage of tax credits. This however is not compulsory. Day Nurseries can care for children aged from birth to five years and usually offer day care from 8am to 6pm, for most of the year. All day nurseries will be registered with Ofsted and inspected regularly. You can view inspection reports by visiting www. ofsted. gov. uk They can be run by private individuals, community groups, Montessori organisations, commercial businesses or by employers. Private Nursery Schools (aka Private Independent Schools) are owned privately and can offer sessional or full day care to children aged two to five. Some schools can offer a particular educational approach, for example Montessori. They may operate only during term-time or could open all year. They could be registered with Ofsted or the ISI (Independent School Directorate) (LEA) Maintained Nursery Schools offer full and part-time early years education places, typically between school hours. They are attached to primary schools. A child can attend for a full or half day. Nursery schools may also offer childcare after school (see out of school clubs). Pre-schools and playgroups offer care to children in their local community, either as a morning or afternoon session or as extended sessions including lunch. They are often run by voluntary groups but can also be run by private individuals. They care for children aged from two to five years and are usually open during term time. They differ from day nurseries in that they offer sessional based care and admit children from the age of two years old. They can be registered with Ofsted or unregistered. Independent Schools are owned privately and cater for children aged from three to sixteen. The schools are registered with Ofsted or the ISI but make their own arrangements concerning staff numbers qualifications and curriculum. If the school participates in the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) curriculum, it will be inspected by Ofsted. Out of School Clubs (aka Play Centres) provide safe and stimulating play opportunities for school age children at times when schools are not open. They can operate before school in the mornings, from the end of the school day and at the end of the working day, throughout the school holidays, or a combination of all three. They typically cater for children aged four to fifteen but some non-RBKC run clubs might look after younger children.